


Junior

by ardentmuse



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Childbirth, F/M, Infant Death, Marriage, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-12
Updated: 2019-02-12
Packaged: 2019-10-26 18:23:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17751113
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ardentmuse/pseuds/ardentmuse





	Junior

“Y/N, babe, listen. I know your hormones are all over the place at the moment, but we can’t keep having sex four, five times a day. I do have work to do, you know,” Tony said as he heard the distinctive clicking of heeled boots descending upon his lab. He was fully immersed in something on his screen, lines of code and many 3D models filling his vision in all directions. He wasn’t about the let you distract him for the sixth time this week.

After a few more clicks of the shoes, he felt his resolve waver. He loved you and he loved this new you that knew exactly what she wanted when she wanted it. The boldness of you approaching him in his lab had him drunk with need for you already.

“Okay, you’ve convinced me! Have your way with me, honey. But after today, this has to stop.”

Tony swiveled in his chair, turning his attention from the screens to the presence behind him. When he saw it wasn’t you, he pouted.

“You. I definitely don’t have time for you,” Tony said to Natasha quickly before turning his attention back to his screen.

“I think you do, Tony,” she said before moving to stand directly beside him.

“As you can see, I am quite busy. And as you aren’t my wife here to take advantage of me, then you can leave.”

“Tony, you need to listen,” Nat pleaded. The emotion in her voice quickly drew Tony’s attention.

“What happened?” he urged, knowing Nat wouldn’t be so expressive if it weren’t serious.

“Y/N,” Nat hesitated with how to say what she needed to say, “She is with the doctors. Something– happened this morning.”

Tony immediately stood, grabbed his coat from the back of the chair, and made almost sprinting for the doors.

Nat jumped in front of him as quickly as she could, hands on his chest to prevent his movement.

“Stop.”

“Let me go see her,” he warned, pushing forward.

“I need you to calm down. Right now. And listen to me.”

Tony stopped and crossed his hands over his chest like a petulant child.

“Fine, Nat. But you have three seconds before I bust past you and –” Tony’s words were interrupted by a frustrated Nat demanding, “That’s exactly what you won’t do.”

Nat took a deep breath and continued, “Y/N needs you right now, needs you calm and supportive, not going in there all guns blazing and firing every doctor who’s touched her.”

Tony was losing his patience, “Tell. Me. Now,” he said through gritted teeth.

“We were eating breakfast and she started to feel lightheaded. I offered to help walk her to your room but she collapsed. And there was blood,” Nat’s voiced dropped to a whisper as she finished, “A lot of blood.”

Tony was doing the best he could to breath. Lightheadedness was normal for a pregnant woman. You were 18 weeks along now and while most of the nausea was gone, the need for rest wasn’t. But bleeding was weird. Why would you be bleeding– Oh, no.

“Did she–” Tony asked after a moment, his face turning ashen.

“Yes,” Nat whispered, unable to meet his gaze, “He’s gone, Tony.”

Tony pushed past Nat with little resistance, fleeing his lab and making for the elevators. His brain was going at full speed. You must be so scared. How could something like this happen? You had the best doctors on you at all times. He had made certain of that himself. How could they not see this coming? Someone was going to have hell to pay for putting you through this. You had spent this whole past week convinced you were about to feel the baby move. Now he understood why that never happened.

He only vaguely heard Nat calling behind him, “If you upset her, Tony, I will kill you,” as the elevator doors closed.

Tony had every intention of ignoring Nat’s advice, of simply barging in the door and demanding action, of putting on his confident boss persona for the sake of trying to make this and you better. But when he found you lying in a bed in the infirmary, he immediately softened. You were paler than usual, eyes closed with the blankets cocooning you from the world. You were curled up in the tiniest ball he’d ever seen, hair a mess around your head, body shaking from tears still to be shed. You didn’t need Mr. Stark. You didn’t need Iron Man. You needed Tony.

“Tony,” he heard you whisper. Tony took a seat on the edge of the bed. Hesitantly, he reached up and began stroking your cheek.

“Y/N, look at me,” he whispered.

You didn’t turn, still curled in your ball and shaking with tears.

Tony did what he could to steady himself. He continued his gentle caresses of your face and decided to speak to your limp form.

“Are you okay? Do you need anything? What can I do?” he asked.

You simply shook your head, burying yourself further into the blankets.

He took a deep breath and looked to the ceiling, hoping to discover somewhere in the panels there that might tell him what he should do next. For a genius, he was amazed at how often he found himself without a single thought on what to do. But that was what having you in his life meant, the one puzzle that would never have a straightforward answer, the one thing in his life that would continue to challenge him until the end of his days.

When he turned back, he saw you looking up at him. You gave him a faint smile, though your face was still wet with tears and your form still small and lacking color. But you were beautiful, maybe even more so now for your strength and courage in these events. From you, he could draw some strength.

With new resolve, he returned to sit beside you, taking your hand in his own and asking, “Tell me what happened, honey.”

You shrugged and whispered simply, “I lost the baby.” You tried to smile at him again but a wave of tear overcame you.

Tony whipped away the few stray tears he had failed to notice make a path down his face. He pulled himself fully up onto the bed and pulled you flush to him. He curled his body around yours and let himself feel the intense shakes your body was eliciting with each wave of tears, hoping to absorb any ounce of your pain and all of your guilt.

“You didn’t lose the baby. These things just happen sometimes. You did nothing wrong. You were perfect. You are perfect,” he said as his hand searched around your torso until it felt your delicate fingers and held them, “Please see that, babe.”

You didn’t speak, only nodding in understanding at his words. Tony didn’t press you, knowing you both needed to feel this loss. And so for about an hour he held you, you both shedding the necessary tears and feeling warmth from one another.

Finally, Tony broke the silence.

“What should we name him?” he asked into your hair.

“You want to name him?” you replied, a little stunned that your sometimes repressed spouse wasn’t wanting to just push this aside and pretend it never happened.

“I do. He was our child and we should honor him with a name,” he stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world, “It will make it easier for us to talk about it, too.”

“Well,” you said after a moment, hesitant as you hadn’t discussed baby names yet, “I had been referring to him in my head as Teddy. I figured he’d be Anthony Edward Stark Junior, but we wouldn’t want another Tony running around. One’s already too many.”

Despite the jab, your playful tone sent a light to Tony he hadn’t realized he’d needed. You’d get through this. You’d get through this together.

“Teddy,” he said, contemplating, “I like it.”

You hummed in agreement as Tony pulled you flush to him again, allowing sleep to begin to heal such a deep wound.


End file.
